Boy, 11, wants to amputate own legs for chance at walking

BERKELEY, Calif. (KGO/WCIV) --{}A boy in Berkeley, Calif., has made a difficult decision about his future, but it's one his parents support. The 11-year-old wants to have part of his leg amputated.

"Like right now, my leg is broken," said Amit Vigoda, an amputee candidate.

The 11-year-old has a rare disorder that causes his leg bones to fracture under the slightest stress.

"Sometimes he even has night terrors. He's on the maximum amount of Tylenol and Advil that he could be on for his age," said Zimra Vigoda, Amit's mother.

That's why the 11-year-old Berkeley student actually wants to amputate part of his right leg.

"I've been through so much, and from my experience I know that I'm not sure if it's going to heal or not. But if I'm going to amputate it, I'm going to have more of a chance of running and walking and playing contact games," said Amit Vigoda.

He broke his leg by simply walking on it but despite the dangers, his parents let their son play wheelchair basketball for the joy of it.

"Now, my leg is shorter than the other. So before when I walked, I was limping a lot and I don't like limping because people all the time looking at you," he said.

With a prosthetic leg, Vigoda wants to run. His website is growing as he blogs about his personal decision.

"I can tell you that I'm scared. This thing is freaking me out," he said.

And so far he's had the full support of his parents and doctors, except for the idea of preserving his foot in a lava lamp.